Jim Cramer of CNBC on Thursday questioned “real prices” on Wall Street, as he exasperatedly tried to explain the GameStop rally of up to 175% in the last two days.
“I think the average American is trying to figure out how to find a stock that’s tripling,” Cramer said. “‘Look what you’re talking about with FAANG. I want a triple.’ FAANG, an acronym invented by Cramer, represents major technological actions – Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google Alphabet.
“It’s what people want. They want a triple. It’s not necessarily what we can offer,” the Crazy Money host said. “Robinhood wants it. WallStreetBets wants it,” he added, referring to popular online brokerage among young investors and the Reddit forum in the GameStop saga.
Amid the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Cramer said with confidence that GameStop is “what grabs America” and the investing public.
The frenzy of online trading around the video game retailer flared up again on Wednesday, when the shares doubled following the announcement of the departure of the financial director Jim Bell next month. The stock rose again by more than 70% on Thursday at one stage before halving the gain in the volatile session.
Cramer said it seems unlikely that a CFO change could be the catalyst for these moves.
Ryan Cohen, a major GameStop investor and co-founder of online retailer Chewy, and GameStop itself, were reassured during the oversized swings that began last month with a short hedge fund of around $ 20 per share, which brought the stock up 2,300% to $ 483. GameStop dropped below $ 50 by mid-February before Wednesday’s peak.
Cohen posted a cryptic tweet on Wednesday afternoon, and Cramer and the other “Squawk on the Street” hosts speculated on Thursday morning what it might mean.